Samsung Galaxy S9 Is Tougher To Repair Than Apple iPhone X

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ were launched in Barcelona on the 25th of February. While it is tough to figure out key differences between the S8 and S9 from the outside, the story doesn’t change much once you tear it down.

The folks at iFixit have posted a detailed teardown of the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+ and the results are not too different from what we expected. The 2018 flagship smartphones get a score 4/10, just like the S8, while the Apple iPhone X got a score of 6/10. The higher the number, the easier it is to repair the device.

According to the teardown, the iris scanner found on the Galaxy S9 isn’t all too different from the one found on the S8. In fact, the front camera is comparable with its predecessor as well. This is an interesting revelation considering the company has hyped up its new “Intelligent Scan” feature. If almost the same hardware is used, then a future software update could introduce this feature on the likes of Galaxy S8 and Note8.

Apart from that revelation, this is quite standard for an all glass and metal smartphone. While the industry is fast moving towards an all-glass build for a lot of devices, this does mean that more smartphones will be fragile. Subsequently, iFixit notes that:

Display and rear glass increase the chance of breakage, and make repairs difficult to start. Replacing the screen requires removing the glass rear panel and disassembling the entire phone while battling tough adhesive.

While the iPhone X does score a higher repairability score, the results are nothing to ride home about. In fact, in its teardown of the iPhone X, iFixit said:

Glass on front and back doubles the likelihood of drop damage. If the back glass breaks, you’ll be removing every component and replacing the entire chassis.

This just reiterates that with a premium smartphone, comes great responsibility. While the Galaxy S9 and S9+ cost lesser than the iPhone X, repair costs will differ.